Democratic Senator Joe Lieberman took the unusual step of praising President Bush while chiding John Kerry during a campaign stop in Florida Wednesday. Lieberman, with just three weeks left before the election, praised Bush strongly for his support of Israel, America's lone democratic ally in the Mid-East. "We are dealing with a president who's had a record of strong, consistent support for Israel. You can't say otherwise," Lieberman told an audience of 600 near Delray Beach, Fla, the Palm Beach Post reported in editions Thursday. Lieberman also added that any criticism of Bush vis-à-vis Israel would be "unjustified."
After the speech, the paper said Lieberman spoke to reporters and suggested that "Bush appears to have made inroads with Jewish voters, who voted Democratic by an estimated 4-to-1 margin in 2000." But Lieberman indicated Kerry's support among Jews may be softer, and he chided the Democratic nominee for not coming out more strongly for Israel. "And I think John Kerry, to reassure people, has to himself be explicit" rather than having surrogates deliver the message, the Post quoted Lieberman as saying. |